Dan Manjang, Plateau State Commissioner for Science and Technology, says cybercrime within the country can only be curbed if offenders are apprehended and quickly punished.
The commissioner made the suggestion in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abeokuta on Sunday.
He noted that if people were punished for various offences, it would serve as lessons to others, saying that the best way to take cybercrime off the street was to follow the rules guiding the menace and implement it.
Manjang added that all relevant stakeholders must join forces to tame the growing internet crime.
“The menace can be curbed if we apply the rules because there are rules governing cybercrime and the rules should be implemented and the offenders should be punished.
“If people are punished, it will serve as a deterrent to others.
“Why cyber criminality is on the increase is because people are not punished, ‘’ he said.
Manjang said that Plateau State had succeeded in coming up with the bill establishing the Plateau Information Technology Development Agency, saying the state governor had already assented to it and it had become a law.
The commissioner noted that there was nothing anyone could do at this global age without Information Communication Technology, noting that Plateau State Government was moving with current trends.
“Information and Communication Technology (ICT) systems are now as basic to our lives as water and electricity,’’ he said. (NAN)